Macedonian UCK

The National Liberation Army, also known as the Macedonian UÇK, was an Albanian nationalist and secessionist guerrilla organization that was active in Macedonia from 2000 to 2002. Ali Ahmeti organized the UÇK of former Kosovo Liberation Army fighters from Kosovo and Macedonia, Albanian insurgents from Presevo, Medveda, and Bujanovac in Serbia, young Albanian radicals and nationalists from Macedonia, and foreign mercenaries. The UÇK was kept out of the public eye until it began to openly engage the Macedonian military and police, and its goal was to secure equal rights for the ethnic Albanian minority within a confederate Macedonia. Beginning on 22 January 2001, the UÇK waged a guerrilla war against the Macedonian government, and it took control of a large swathe of northern and western Macedonia, coming within 12 miles of the capital of Skopje. On 13 August 2001, the two sides signed a peace deal to end the conflict, and the Ohrid Agreement led to the disarmament of the UÇK and the granting of increased rights to the Albanian minority. However, splintergroups began to launch sporadic attacks against the Macedonian government after 2004.